The Bead Place

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Reminder:  We will be closed July 4th!  Have a safe and happy holiday!

Mission: Small Business!

Wouldn't it be cool if your favorite small business was awarded a $250,000 grant to help them grow to become everything they aspire to be?  We think so too!  That's why we're asking for your help.  We are hoping for the chance to win a grant from Mission: Small Business, and with your help we'll be eligible.  We need your vote!  You can even vote for as many small businesses as you'd like!  Please visit www.missionsmallbusiness.com and log in using your Facebook account.  (Don't worry - it won't post anything to your wall unless you want it to!  If you don't have Facebook, why not ask your kids or a friend to help us out?  We'd really appreciate it!)  Once you're logged in, type "The Bead Place" and select Illinois/Fairview Heights.  If you REALLY want to help us out, share with your friends on Facebook that you voted for us and ask them to do the same!  You really can & do make a difference!

Beading With a Buddy Night!

Bring a friend Saturday, July 21st, from 7p-10p for a night of fun, shopping, make & takes, and free demos - with beads AND yarn!  We will treat you to a free gift if your friend joins the Bead Club or the Yarn Club.  The more friends you bring, the more gifts you'll receive if they join!  With every $50 purchase, you or your friend will receive one entry to a grand prize drawing!  We'll see you and your pals then!  Mark your calendars now!

New Beads!

Boy is it fun to get new stuff in every day...  We have new strands of beautiful wood from the Philippines, new strands of spotted multicolor ceramic rounds, artisan ceramic pendants and coin beads, awesome raku fired animal beads, antique style pocket watches, new size 15 seed beads, new Delica 11 seed beads, small pewter message charms, new Green Girl beads and charms, bright fun summery colors of The Bead Place craft wire, new chain, bright fun summery colors of fairy ribbon, new necklace cords, new cardinal beads, AND if you're coming to our FREE WORKSHOP this month to learn the Simply Charming Bracelet, you'll witness the unveiling of our NEW CHARMS!

New Yarn!

We have TONS of new colors of Tonic!  Look how pretty they are!  Tonic has been a crowd favorite for a while now because it is inexpensive, washable, and very nice to knit with!  It is a light worsted weight yarn made up of 85% Acrylic and 15% Wool.  It has such a beautiful sheen!  Also new in our store: Passion Ice, Passion Nette, and Dakota!  We have brand new colors of Melody and MerinoSilk25!  MerinoSilk25 is another store favorite because of how scrumptious it is, being 75% Virgin Merino Wool and 25% Silk and all.   Here's a secret:  MerinoSilk25 is one of the best deals in the whole store!  One ball of this lace weight beauty has 384 yards!  Wowza!  For under eight bucks?!  Okay!

Summer's Last Blast Yarn Crawl!

July 26th-29th, 2012

Need a quick break before summer ends? Gather your friends, grab your crawl passport, and head out for Summer's Last Blast Yarn Crawl.

Visit participating shops during the specified times to have your crawl passport stamped and receive a free pattern. Visit as many shops as you can in order to be eligible for TONS of cool prizes! 

Passports for the crawl will be available on our website before the crawl or during the crawl at any of the participating shops. Check out the Summer's Last Blast Facebook Page for more information! 

Don't forget to buy local & from independent retailers whenever possible. To find out more about this important movement, please click The 3/50 Project. You can & do make a difference!

Yay Local Artists! Buy Handmade!

It’s Springtime…

Hello to all our Bead & Fiber Lovers,

What’s On Sale?  Well, since you asked… How about this?  Bead Club members enjoy BOGO on ALL GLASS STRANDS - pressed glass, daggers, flowers, leaves, ovals, & rounds!  Buy one strand get one strand ½ off.  (This sale excludes Chinese crystal, Swarovski crystal & seed beads). Sale starts now & will run through the end of May.  If you have never noticed the wall of glass in our store, next time you’re in, take a moment & just look at all the beautiful color.  These strands make beautiful, bright jewelry for the upcoming summer season.

Happy Hour for Bead Club Members  Effective immediately & running through the end of May, The Bead Place will be hosting a happy hour every day from 2pm to 4pm.  No, we’re not serving drinks; we’re serving up tasty savings on strands of beautiful fresh-water pearls.  Half-off all full strands of fresh-water pearls from the walls or the showcase, every day from 2-4pm!  Quench your desire for beautiful pearls.

Farewell to Miche Bags  Enjoy 50% savings on all Miche related items while supplies last.

FREE Workshop Saturday, April 28th from 12-3p The Free Workshops are so much fun.  Mark it on your calendar & make a point to join us this month.  Stop in to see a sample of this month’s project, or check out the list of upcoming (& past) workshops at www.beadplace.net under News Feed, or on the calendar page.  We will be showing you how to make the Fairy Bangle this month.  No experience necessary…we promise!

NEW Metal Mondays The last Monday of every month is Metal Monday or Open Studio for you to use our tools & materials - just $10.00 per person.  Get advice & ideas from other metal-heads like yourself.

Some of the tools at your disposal: Metal letter & design stamps, assorted hammers, brass texture plates, torches, tripods, kiln, kiln bricks, third hands, bench blocks, vices, anvils, hole punches, dapping blocks, liver of sulfur, pickle, steel wool, micro buffing pads, forming pliers, brass & steel brushes, metal shears, steel ring & bracelet mandrels, tumbler, files, hand & power drills, center punches, badger balm, rubber texture mats (for PMC or polymer clay), acrylic rollers, clay misters, permanent markers, & various metal clay tools.

Metal Monday is first come, first serve.  Make sure to arrive by 7p.  Our hope is that Metal Monday will be a time for you to work on or try out a new project.  With that being said, anyone is welcome to come & watch, or just hang out, but please be courteous to those around you who are working.  If you plan to torch, please BYOB (bring your own butane - refills can be found at any hardware store in a little canister).

We hope to see you for our first Metal Monday, 4/30/12 at 7p.  Drop in & watch a demo on how to make a ball pin.  Fire is FUN!

5/6/12 Sunday - Can't find the perfect gift for Mother's Day?  Why not make it?!  We're hosting a Mother's Day Stamping Event the Sunday before Mother's Day.  Stop in anytime between 1p & 5p & we'll help you stamp something perfect for Mom!

MARK YOUR CALENDARS  He's coming back!  Trunk Show with Toyo at The Bead Place!  Monday, May 7th, 10a – 5p.  Bring your friends & shop ‘til you drop for beautiful high-quality precious & semi-precious gemstone strands.  One Day Only - Don’t miss the excitement!

5/26/12 Saturday - Sara of C-Koop is coming!!!! One of our favorite artists, Sara Lukkonen of C-Koop will be coming HERE to teach a Torch Enameling Class.  If you love her work as much as we do, & would like to know the art of copper enameling, sign up now!!!  There are still a few openings!  (Students supply MAPP gas & safety glasses - all other materials are included.)  Class fee is $120.00.  Please have a credit card handy when calling to register.  Exact time of class will be announced.

More yarn has been added to the 35% off sale bin.  Be sure to take a peek.  Woot!

New Goodies  Noro Shiraita - a luscious cashmere blend, Killino - a great linen/cotton yarn, Luna by Trendsetter with beautiful sequins, Luxury Silk by Knitting Fever, Luxury Mohair by Knitting Fever, Tamarillo another beautiful cotton by Schulana, Silver-filled French hook earrings, Small, tiny, itty-bitty letter & number stamps, More design stamps, Swarovski Crystal colors for summer, Silver-filled stamping blanks, Silk fairy ribbons

New Classes

Fair Isle Tam Class by Bridgette

English Garden Bracelet by Abbi

Organic Bangles by Abbi

Coming Soon

Summer’s Last Blast Yarn Crawl 7/26-29/12 (“Like” this on Facebook for periodic updates)

Frabjous Fibers Silk Hankies

One skein novelty scarf yarns from Plymouth

Colorful Hemp Samplers

Metal Cast Pendants

Reminders:  To honor our beautiful Mothers, The Bead Place will be Closed on Mother’s Day.  Have a wonderful day!

Like us on Facebook to be “in” on the scoop. Sometimes there are secret sales. Shhh.

Don’t forget to buy local & from independent retailers whenever possible. To find out more about this important

movement, please click (www.the350project.net). You can & do make a difference!

Yay Local Artists! Buy Handmade!

The Bead Place 5200 North Illinois, Ste. 102 Fairview Heights, IL 62208 618/222-0772

www.beadplace.net for news, videos, and a current list of upcoming classes.

The Bead Place Stash Swap

Here's the scoop - Abbi Berta of www.beadplace.net is hosting a stash swap!  The idea of this swap is to revive your stash and your creativity by challenging you to work with beads and findings that are new to you, from someone else in the swap!  There's also prizes involved!

Here's the deal - Swap participants should collect approximately $25 retail worth of beads and/or findings from their own stash, plus a $5ish bonus item.  Shopping for swap items is discouraged.  Participants should then photograph what they're planning to swap.  Blogging a photo of what you're sending in, with a link to the swap info (this page), is encouraged but definitely not necessary.  Participants will then e-mail that photo and some other information to ME (abbi@beadplace.net) and I will drool over all of the goodies.  Once all of the entry photographs have been turned in, participants will be given the name and address of the future recipient of their loot (and a small note about themselves and what kind of beadwork they like to do).  Participants will have a week to mail their items.  Once the items have been received, participants should feel free to post pictures of what they've gotten to create their project.  Then, in a little over a month, a picture of the finished piece is due via e-mail!

Here's the catch - (...And by catch, I mean the good thing!) Once I have received all of the photos of the beautiful creations, I will post all of the pictures to this blog.  Participants, and participants only, will get to vote for their favorite piece.  The artist with the most votes will get a HUGE GRAND PRIZE! mailed to them that will be composed of $5 (approximately) items mailed in to ME by all of the participants, plus a bunch more stuff!  There will also be more prizes awarded to other participants.  Pretty cool, right?  Remember, the more people that participate in the swap, the bigger the prizes get, so don't forget to get your friends involved!

Here's the How-To - 

E-mail abbi@beadplace.net with a photo of what you're planning to swap and your mailing address by Sunday, April 1st at the latest.

Once you've gotten the name and mailing address of someone, mail them your loot and a small note about yourself and what kind of jewelry making you do.  You will also then mail your $5ish bonus item to ME so that I can assemble the prize packs!  This will need to be completed as soon as possible, but no later than Monday, April 9th. 

When you receive your goodies, get to work!  You will need to create a piece of jewelry made out of the beads from the swap.  You don't have to use all of the beads from the swap, nor only the beads from the swap, but it needs to be obvious that you've used your swap materials.  Take a picture of your finished piece and submit it to me, via e-mail, by Saturday, May 19th. 

You will receive an e-mail once all of the photos have been posted on this blog so that you can view them and vote for your favorite.  E-mail me back within the week with the name of the artist who created your favorite piece.

The grand prize winner will be announced on June 1st! 

I'm excited!  Have questions?  Leave a comment on this post or e-mail me at abbi@beadplace.net. 

If you are interested in donating prizes in return for shout-outs, or are interested in sponsoring the swap, please e-mail me.

Thanks so much for reading!  With your help, this is going to be fantastic and fun!

-Abbi

News from The Bead Place

Hello - you beautiful bead and fiber lovers.

Since it has been a little while since you’ve heard from us, we thought now would be a great time to share with you a few really exciting things:

-BIG NEWS for Abbi - She will be featured in the June/July issue of Step by Step Wire magazine for her Love Knot Ring and again in the August/September issue for her Battered Heart Pendant. Her Battered Heart Class is available now (Thursday, 3/22/12 at 7p)! You can be among the first to make what others won’t know about until summer!  Congratulations Abbi, we’re so proud of you!

-MARK YOUR CALENDARS -The last Saturday of Every Month is FREE Workshop Day at The Bead Place. The Free Workshops are from Noon to 3pm, and they are so much fun! Make plans to join us this Saturday to learn Metal Stamping. And, as always, no experience necessary…we promise! Feel free to check out the list of upcoming (and instructions for past) workshops at www.beadplace.net under News Feed, or on the calendar page.

-TUCSON Wow! Another wonderful experience in beautiful Tucson! Abbi and Rhonda had a great time choosing lots and lots of fantastic new things for you. The majority of our selections have arrived and we are VERY ANXIOUS for the Tucson Event! All of our Tucson purchases will be in store, ready for you on Monday, March 5th. However, if you are a Bead Club member who has achieved Lifetime or Diamond status, oh boy, do we have a surprise for you!

The Tucson Event

Saturday, 3/3/12 & Sunday, 3/4/12

5:30pm – 8pm

Don’t miss it! Special Offers! Make and Take Projects! Prizes! Grand Prize Drawing! Refreshments! And, the best part…First Dibs!

As always, our Lifetime and Diamond Bead Club members get first chance at all the new products. These two nights are reserved for them only. No guests, please. All others will be turned away. Please understand, this is our chance to honor and show our appreciation to our Lifetime and Diamond Bead Club Members for their patronage and loyalty. Thank you!

******

Sara of C-Koop is coming!!!! We want to give you early notice of more really exciting news. One of our most favorite artists, Sara Lukkonen of C-Koop will be coming HERE to teach a Torch Enameling Class, on Saturday, May 26, 2012. The maximum number of students she will take is 12. If you love her work as much as we do, and would like to know how to do copper enameling, sign up now!!!

Saturday, 5/26/12 - at The Bead Place - $120 per student - students supply MAPP gas and safety glasses - all other materials are included . Please have a credit card handy when calling to register. Exact time of class to be announced.

What’s New

-Copper, Brass & Nickel Silver Stamping Blanks

-New Torches

-TierraCast Charms, Buttons, Spacers, Bails

-Letter/Design Stamps

-1.8mm Hole Punch - now with Gauge Guard

New in the Yarn Department

-Beautiful cotton blends: Daisy & Whitney by Plymouth

-New colors of Encore & Kudo by Plymouth

-Pansies (100% cotton) by Ella Rae

-Lace Merino by Ella Rae, colors are to dye for

-Superwash Chunky Wool by Ella Rae

-Bubbles by Knitting Fever, so incredibly beautiful

-Petals Ruffle Yarn (a springtime novelty) one skein scarf

-Boreal & Kimbo by Katia - Extra, extra chunky fun 

-Zucca by Trendsetter, way soft

New Classes

-Advanced Viking Knit by Carolyn

-Tweed 2-Shuttle weaving by Jill

-Battered Heart Pendant by Abbi

-Mermaid’s Tail Bracelet by Abbi

-Entrelac Tam by Bridgette

-Manhattan Bracelet by Abbi

Coming Soon

All the Tucson Goodies

Taiyo Yarn by Noro – Worth the wait!

Torch Enameling Class with Sara Lukkonen of C-Koop Yipee !!!!!!

You can find a list of other upcoming classes at www.beadplace.net .

Thanks for shopping local and from independent retailers whenever possible. To find out more about this important movement, please click (www.the350project.net). You can & do make a difference!

Yay Local Artists! Buy Handmade!

Mummy Pendant Video Instructions!

Materials Needed: 26g craft wire, (2) 3mm bicone crystals, 5mm jump ring, 2 chain nose pliers

Project, photography/videography, and instructions by:  Abbi Berta

 September News from The Bead Place

Howdee!

First things First! The Bead Place will be Closed Monday, September 5th in observation of Labor Day. We will reopen on Tuesday at 10am. Everyone have a safe and restful holiday.

FREE Workshops the last Saturday of Every Month from 12-3p Our Free Workshops are going over very well. Mark it on your calendar so you won’t forget to come and join in all the fun. Stop in to see a sample of this month’s project, or check out the list of upcoming (and past) workshops at www.beadplace.net under News Feed, or on the calendar page.

New Stuff!

New Miche “middle size” Bag

New colors of size 6 seed beads

Beginning Knitted Lace Class by Theresa Bridgeman

Kazuri Bead Bangle Bracelet Class by Terry Dudley

Hairpin Lace Looms for the Fiber Boa (selling fast, taking orders now)

Casuale Yarn – wool and cotton blend (soft and yummy)

Mito Yarn – wool and acrylic (bulky and beautiful, the look of handspun)

Malizia – wool, acrylic and lame (a hint of sparkle in this bulky yarn makes all the difference)

Unicorne Beads in Fabulous colors

Lisa Kan new flowers and leaves

Wow’ers (Hand-dyed, hand-woven flower pins by Bridgette Saunders)

Paillettes (incredible kid mohair/silk blend with sequins)

Seda Lux (silk/lurex blend – very luxurious I-cord construction)

Also “Kind-of” New  Halloween Beads are HERE!  And…to get you in the “spirit” we will be offering 20% off all Halloween Beads for 1 week only - September 12th – 18th. Get ‘em now and SAVE!!!!

The Sale for September! We are excited to offer 25% off ALL SEED BEADS this month (and yes this includes Delicas). We were thrilled and honored by Kate McKinnon’s recent visit to one of our Peyote Nights.  Kate said she had a great time with the group and has graciously offered to return to do a Free Demo Night on Friday, September 30th during Peyote Night.  She is in the process of publishing another book and is looking for some testers and a little feedback…please check the Facebook page, as we’ll post more information as it becomes available.

Coming Soon! More Novelty Yarn by Trendsetter, More Pewter beads and findings, Mountain Colors BFL Roving, Semi Precious strands, Knitting with beads class, Silk/Cashmere Yarn by Mountain Colors, Frabjous Fibers notions

Reminders: If you want to be “in” on all the scoop, join Facebook, and become a fan of The Bead Place. 

Join the Yarn Club for a 10% discount on yarn and needles EVERY purchase!!

Don’t forget to buy local and from independent retailers whenever possible. To find out more about this important movement, please click (www.the350project.net). You can make a difference!

Yay Local Artists! Buy Handmade!

The Bead Place 5200 North Illinois, Ste. 102 Fairview Heights, IL 62208 618/222-0772

www.beadplace.net for news, videos, and a current list of upcoming classes.